~ "Like branches on a tree, our lives may grow in different directions yet our roots remain as one."

Tag Archives: America

Ancestry.co.uk have recently released a major new collection of documents that relate to New York Naturalisation Records from 1897-1944. If you have relatives that went to the US to “chase the American dream”, this is an exciting development.

Needless to say, I have started to search through the collection for any new records in relation to our Teigers that moved to live in America.

My first new find was paperwork for Dora Teiger, nee Reinlieb. Dora married William Teiger in 1926 and although I have posted her wedding photo before, it really is a beautiful photo, so I am posting it again!

Dora Reinlieb on her wedding day 1926

On Dora’s “Declaration of Intention” form we see an updated photo of her which I assume was taken in 1940 as this is when the form is dated. She still looks as beautiful as she did on her wedding day!

Dora Teiger abt. 1940

The Declaration form was completed in March 1940 and it gives us a wealth of information about Dora and the rest of her family. It’s even got her signature on it!

Declaration of Intention form for Dora Teiger 25.03.1940.(curtsey of the Ancestry.co.uk website)

We learn that the family home address is 710 Fairmont Place, Bronx, New York. A quick search on the old trusted Google Maps shows this area now consists of fairly modern “replacement” buildings.

Husband’s details – born in Liverpool 04.05.1900 and entered the Unites States at New York 02.08.1923.

Children – two, Leonora born 01.01.1928 in New York and Jack born 25.06.1931 in New York.

Emigrated to the United States from Libau, Russia under the name of Dwasje Reinlieb on 16.09.1912.

Two years later she signed her “Petition for Naturalisation” and the family are now living at 804 East 178th Street, New York. The rest of the information remains the same although it is a little clearer to read than the earlier form!

Like this:

Ian Teiger in The Wirral has very kindly ventured into his loft and retrieved a whole host of treasures that I intend to share with you all as and when they come through to me. It may be that you have the same photos/documents in your collection or may be they will be new to you and never seen before.

Deborah Leah

Deborah was Ian’s grandmother and was the wife of Jacob Sol Teiger who settled in Liverpool. There now seems to be a little confusion over her maiden name. The marriage record for Jacob and Deborah states that it was Samuels. The birth certificate for their daughter Miriam implies it to have been Goldberg. Another mystery to solve then!

Deborah Leah and her children

Ian thinks this may have been taken just after the death of Jacob in 1920. From left to right we have:

A possible photo of Adolph Max Teiger b.1880. The photo has Adolph Zendel written on the back and is clearly taken in America. Adolph went to America and used the surname of Taylor. Could he also have used a version of his mother’s maiden name of Sendel? Mystery number two to investigate!

Jospeh and Fay Teiger

First time I’ve seen a photo of Fay (Fanny) Kleiff, Joesph’s second wife. His first wife Annie Ison passed away in 1918 as a result of the flu epidemic.

Top left – Joseph and Fay Teiger

Top right – A friend of Hetty, Miriam (Hetty), Fay Teiger nee Kleiff

Bottom left – Now we have a photo that is a mystery but could possibly be Amelia Teiger. The lady quite clearly has Teiger features and looks very much like Joseph. If you recognise this person please let me know!

William Teiger was the son of Jacob Sol Teiger, the line of the family that settled in Liverpool. Jaccob was Mindel’s brother-in-law and it has not yet been proved who arrived in the UK first.

William went to America in 1923 and was listed as a Hebrew cook on the SS Adriatic. He seems to have sailed back and forth to New York several times in 1923 before deciding to settle.

SS Adriatic (White Star Line). Launched, September 20, 1906. Maiden voyage: Liverpool-New York, May 8, 1907. A very steady and excellent type of passenger ship. Sold to Japanese shipbreakers in December 1934. Dismantled in Japan, 1935. Sister ship: Baltic. Note: The top superstructure differed considerably from the Baltic. However they were quite similar in other aspects. The general appearance also was similar to the Cedric and Celtic. The four liners comprised the White Star Line’s “Big Four”.

It wasn’t until 1926 that William married Dora Reinleib who was a Russian immigrant into America. What William was doing in the intervening years I have yet to discover.

1940 finds the family (William, wife Dora and children Leonora and Jack) living at 710 Fairmont Place, Bronx, New York, as they were in 1935. The family still seem to be suffering from the effects of the 1937-1939 American recession (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recession_of_1937) as William, a painter in the building trade, has been out of work for the past 16 weeks prior to the census being taken on 1st April 1940. Dora is presently in work employed in children’s clothing manufacture but she too has been unemployed for 8 weeks in the past 12 months. William only worked 20 weeks out of 52 in 1939, Dora worked 40. Their wages for the time they worked are not great. William earned $1400.00 for 20 weeks work, a mere $70.00 per week. Dora’s wages are even lower earning $600 for 40 weeks work, $15.00 per week (this may have been part time work). Their monthly rent was $36.00 per month so I am sure that money would have been tight for them.